“She said … ‘I am here to provide services for you and if you’re considering that maybe your feelings aren’t correct … we’ve got strong connections in the church. We can set you up to talk to the priest if you’re questioning your identity or any of your values, but we believe you’ve got really strong values … so we don’t want to see that go away’.”

FELIX DESMARAIS/SUPPLIED

Young Labour rainbow member Teri O’Neill, foreground, speaks to a crowd of about 60 people gathered at Parliament, in Wellington, to present a petition calling for a ban on gay conversion therapy.

O’Neill’s teacher talked about “Catholic values” and how students at her school stayed true to those values.

“She spoke about being able to help me if I was questioning myself … the conversation was presented to me as an opportunity to reaffirm Catholic values against homosexuality.”

The petition presented on Wednesday was made up of 15,448 signatures obtained by by the Young Greens and Young Labour, and another 5157 signatures obtained by the Rodney Area Rainbow LGBTQ+.

InsideOut National Coordinator Tabby Besley said a ban was important because gay conversion therapy was an “extremely damaging, harmful practice”.

“We already are five times more likely to attempt suicide than non-rainbow people in New Zealand and [gay conversion therapy] sends people into this place where they’re being told that who they are is wrong.”

FELIX DESMARAIS/SUPPLIED

InsideOut National Coordinator Tabby Besley with the petition calling for a ban on gay conversion therapy. It was signed by more than 20,000 people.

The petition, and a law change resulting from it – would be a “good start” and that while it would be “hard to know” how it would be policed, it would still be useful,” she said.

“If people are being coerced into that therapy, they’ve actually got the law backing them up so they can report that or get support that will actually help them.”

Young Greens co-convener Max Tweedie said there had been “barely any” resistance to the petition.

“I was expecting the Brian Tamakis of the world to come out against us.”

The petition showed a “groundswell of support” for the ban, he said.

“There are young people that are being harmed by this practice. We know this practice doesn’t work.”